It is amazing to think of how far the technology in cars has come. From Henry Ford’s Model T in 1908 to driverless cars in 2018, car manufacturers are always inventing new ways to use technology to better the driving experience. Vehicles now have the ability to allow drivers to control the car via touch screen. Other vehicles allow drivers to access GPS navigation directions, play music, listen to the radio, and more, all on a screen within the car. About one in three U.S. adults uses “infotainment” systems like these while they while driving. These advances in car technology are meant to make the driving experience more intuitive and efficient, but are these infotainment systems safe?
Driving Blind
According to a study commissioned by the American Automobile Association (AAA), infotainment systems may be putting drivers, passengers, other motorists, and pedestrians at serious risk. Because infotainment systems take drivers’ eyes and attention off the road and hands off the wheel for potentially dangerous periods of time, they cause drivers to essentially be driving blind. Research from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that individuals who use in-vehicle technologies like voice-based and touch screen features were dangerously distracted. The average user of infotainment features is visually and mentally distracted for over 40 seconds when using the system to do things like program navigation, find a radio station, or send a text message. The risk of getting into a car accident doubles by drivers taking their eyes off the road for only 2 seconds, and infotainment users are distracted for 20 times that long!
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